Week 3 Check in
We're over half way through the 30-Day Drawing Habit Challenge - how's it going?? And a few pointers and a Q&A with our GUT visiting artist, Ariel Aberg-Riger.
GUT Peeps! You are AMAZING! You have drawn every single day for over 2.5 weeks! And this week - my gosh! I am utterly in awe of your collage creations. Your creativity. Courage. Commitment. This week contains all the coolest Cs. Can’t corral or contain us! Correct me if you can. Cannot!
I’ll stop.
This is your midweek check in to say HOORAY and KEEP GOING!!
All your formal, conceptual, colorful and HILARIOUS collages are phenomenal. I love seeing everyone’s explorations in the chat on Substack and over on Instagram with the hashtag #DrawTogetherGUT. Interesting to notice that some of you loved the blind contour and some of you love this - not everyone loves everything! And it’s so so good to try new things. We are building our personal art kits, inside and out.
I also want to respond to a few questions/concerns I saw raised in the chat this week.
WendyMac A’s the GUT’s Q’s (er, does that sound weird?)
GUT: Is it okay to keep making past the 10 minute mark?
WendyMac: Of course! No rules in art. You do you. Whatever makes you feel great. But I always wanted to share with you the reason we are working with a 10 minute time limit. There’s science behind it. When we are making something regular over time, it’s important that we look forward to it as much as we can. If we always work on something to finish, then we may not feel good about how it turns out or we get frustrated or our energy wanes. The next day, that yucky feeling is what our brains remember. And since we are more easily motivated by our feeling brain than our logical brain, we’ll be less inclined to start back into it again. However, if we stop what we’re making on a high note - say, ten minutes in - more often than not we will feel pretty good about what we are creating. We’ll want to keep going and look forward to more that same feeling the next day. And that helps us develop a habit.
So that’s why we’re doing ten minutes. You don’t need to do it. You do you. But if you are trying to develop the habit of making something everyday, and you want it to extend beyond these 30-days, it might help.
GUT: I’m spending all my time choosing source images and have no time left to draw.
WendyMac: I get it! If you are enjoying that and it’s working for you, go for it. Again, no rules in art. You do you! (NRIA! YDY! Our new secret handshake.) But if it’s stressing you out at all, that might be your logical brain kicking in, telling you to “choose the BEST thing and make something super cool with it!” That, friends, is an expectation. And we are not about expectations right now. What we are trying to do here is be responsive - in particular to images and shapes and lines and colors. So if you are finding yourself struggling with choosing an image or two, I suggest you cut out the first thing you see and slap it down on the paper in front of you. THAT is what you are working with today. And NOW start the timer.
Remember our lesson on constraints and decision making? Constraints = unexpected creativity. Let one thing lead to the next.
GUT: Do I reallllly have to draw?
WendyMac: It’s called DrawTogether for a reason, people. YES.
GUT: Can I make mine 3D?
WendyMac: I’m so glad you asked that, random GUT member who happens to be named me. Because that is exactly what our guest artist Ariel just did. Check it out and be inspired:
Speaking of Ariel, I had a few burning questions for her, so here is a little Q and A with our amazing Visiting Artist Ariel. Also, her book is an endless source of inspiration and education, and I can’t recommend buying it enough.
Q & A with Artist Ariel Aberg-Riger
Wendy: Ariel! You’re rad. Can you tell us how you got started creating analog collage?
Ariel: My first art love was drawing. I drew growing up, but it was really during my 20s when I started working all day that I found myself craving to make art on a regular basis to unwind…